FULL MOON
by ncsupnatfan
Summary: This short story was inspired by a card given to me by my sister. Sis, I hope I did it proud. There is death of one of the brothers.


**A/N: Just a short one for my sister. Hope you enjoy and I know I didn't mention names, so it can be your choice as to who is who. Reviews are welcome. NC**

* * *

The cold, harsh light of a full moon blanketed the area and penetrated the skeleton branches of the trees to reach the forest floor below. It's eerie glow made the forest seem like something from a horror film; bare branches swaying in the breeze that raced through the tree tops. Night creatures scurried about looking for food, shelter or a mate. None paid any attention to the out of place mound lying on the damp forest floor.

The mound didn't move at first as consciousness slowly began to come back to the form. A finger twitched and a frown creased the forehead, but nothing else moved. He tried to take a deeper breath and found the pain was almost unbearable but it helped to pull his mind toward awareness. He slowly tried to access his injuries by twitching his muscles starting with his toes. He could feel something wet on the side of his face and figured it was blood. A painful cough left a coppery, salty taste in his mouth that he grimaced at. He tried to open his eyes and only got small slits not giving him much of a view. He could tell he was outside and the ground underneath him was cold and slightly damp where his bare skin touched it, especially where his jacket and shirt rode up leaving his back bare.

He tried to remember what had happened but only made his head hurt worse than it did. It seemed every part of his body ached in some form or another. There was a hunt, he did remember that, didn't seem like much when they first checked it out. _Wait...They...He wasn't alone...Oh God is he laying out here with him?...Was he dying too or already dead?_ He thought trying harder to move now but was finding it too difficult. The land around him was covered in shadows and dim light making it look like dawn was breaking sooner than it should be.

His hand began spasm and jerk with movement as he finally got it to move shakily toward his face. It came back slick with blood and he dropped it heavily to his side. He tried to keep his breathing even and slow but with each breath it became harder to draw air into his lungs. He knew he was dying and there was nothing anyone could do to save him. The only thing he did know was the monster was dead; it wouldn't be hurting anyone else. He could feel the darkness creeping in, trying to take over and pushed it back. He was not giving up that easy, not yet anyway until he knew. He coughed again and felt the trickle of blood run down his chin and onto his neck. Deadly silence surrounded him as if the creatures of the night knew he was not long for this world and was quiet out of respect.

A single tear dripped from his eye and left a wet trail down his cheek mixing with blood partway down. He could feel his body growing cold as his life's blood leaked from his body and pooled under him. He could feel his mind growing dim and his life force fading as he fought to try and see around him looking for the other one. It was good, he thought when he didn't see anyone laying near. His only hope was that he was safe away from this place. He had felt the evil when he first found this place and knew this was where it would be found.

Clouds drifted over the full moon sending long shadows out into the forest casting his body in darkness for a moment before it moved on bringing back a lightness that didn't reach his body. He was rattling in his chest now with each stressful pull of air. Going out this way was not how he pictured it. It hurt him to know he was going to be leaving his brother alone in this world. He looked up and found the full moon through the bare branches of the trees and took in the beauty of it for one last time, silently saying a prayer to anyone who could hear it, _Keep my brother safe_. He marveled at how close the white circle seemed to be. It took all his energy to raise one arm toward the sphere just wanting to touch its white surface.

The coldness was going deeper, down to the bone as his breathing was barely discernable. It felt like a curtain was being pulled over his mind and the light of his soul had almost disappeared. His eyes slowly closed and opened a few more times before staying shut.

Crashing and breaking of branches broke the silence as a body stumbled into the clearing searching frantically from his brother. A wail passed his lips when he saw the moonlit shadow of a body laying slightly off center of the clearing. " _No! No! No!"_ he cried as he stumbled toward the body and fell to his knees beside him looking over the torn up body of his brother. He reached a trembling hand toward his brother's neck to try and find a pulse. The body felt cold to his touch as he whispered his brother's name in a cracked voice. The moonlight let him see all the blood seeping from the body as his brother lay dying. He knew there was no saving him; they were too far away from any medical help, but it wouldn't do any good if he could get him out of the forest and to a hospital. His brother was leaving him and there was nothing he could do to stop it. He reached for his hand and held it tight to his cheek before bringing it to his lips for a kiss. Tears leaked from his eyes and spilled down his cheeks as the last of his brother's essence past on from his body. His brother drew in a deep, hard breath and shuttered when he felt it pass through his body and touch his soul with the gentleness that only a brother could give. He looked up toward the full moon and remembered a phrase from a children's book, _I love you to the moon and back._ He knew his brother was gone now; he didn't need to check for a pulse. He sat back on his heels and let his body slump forward in defeat, grief and pain and pulled the lifeless body into his arms, hugging him tight.

The new presence made him stir slightly and the warm touch gave him a peace that at least he wasn't alone now. He hated to do this to his brother but he knew he was strong and would survive. He felt the brotherly touch as his hand was lifted to touch wet skin and a press of lips to it before being place on his chest. He pulled in one more stutter of a breath and released his soul from his broken body. He reached out in passing and let his soul touch his brother's soul one final time before rising toward the moon and sky leaving his brother alone beside his dead body.

His soft sobs continued as he laid the body back down and reached for a dead limb and began to scratch away at the soft, damp dirt beside his brother's body. He would bury him here under a full moon, where he died saving others like he always did. He dug faster and harder, hoping some of the despair would leave him if he labored more. He paused once to swipe an arm across his face to try and clear his vision so he could see better. Small splinters dug into the soft meat of his hands as he enlarged the hole and made it deeper. When he thought he couldn't dig anymore, he collapsed for a moment panting hard as his energy wavered. He couldn't quit, he had to do this and pushed himself up off the ground. He carefully pulled his brother's body into the hollowed out hole, being sure to make him comfortable. After taking out his bandana and shaking it out, he gently covered his brother's face with it before pushing the dirt into the hole and covering his brother's body. He continued until the hole was full and packed down before stopping. He stood and used the moon's dim light to search for rocks for the grave. He had to venture out beyond the clearing to find enough stones to finish the job. He found the monster that his brother had killed and in the process lost his life. Staring down at the body, he felt nothing. There was an emptiness in him now and he didn't think it would ever be filled. When the last stone was in place, he stood and looked one more time down at the grave and then up at the full moon.

"I love you brother, rest in peace." he whispered to it wondering if his brother was looking down on him now. He brushed ad wiped his hands on his jeans to rid them of the dirt and blood that was smeared across them. He felt none of physical pain that his body endured, only a dull, continuous ache deep down in his soul that was never going away, no matter how hard he tried to push and shove it into a box and slam the lid. With a soft sigh, he turned and made his way back out of the woods toward the Impala and a life that didn't have much meaning for him anymore. He was running on automatic as he dropped into the driver's seat and just sat there staring out the windshield at the reflection of the full moon on the hood of the car. The full moon would forever have a new meaning to him and he would be reliving it every month. He closed his eyes to the reflection trying to block the pain from his mind. The Impala cranked with a loud roar and settled into a purr as he put the car in gear and drove away from his brother into an uncertain life on his own.

 **The End**


End file.
